Effects of the annual invasive plant Impatiens glandulifera on the Collembola and Acari communities in a deciduous forest

Invasive plants can disturb interactions between soil organisms and native plants and thereby alter ecosystem functions and/or reduce local biodiversity. Collembola and Acari are the most abundant microarthropods in the leaf litter and soil playing a key role in the decomposition of organic material and nutrient cycling. We designed a field experiment to examine the potential effects of the annual invasive plant Impatiens glandulifera on species diversity, abundance and community composition of Collembola and Acari in leaf litter and soil in a deciduous forest in Switzerland. Leaf litter and soil samples were obtained from plots invaded by I. glandulifera since 6 years, from plots in which the invasive plant had been removed for 4 years and from plots which were not yet colonized by the invasive plant. The 45 leaf litter and soil samples were equally distributed over three forest areas, which were differently affected by a wind throw 12 years prior to sampling representing a natural gradient of disturbance. Collembola species richness and abundance in the leaf litter and soil samples were not affected by the presence of the invasive plant. However, the species composition of Collembola was altered in plots with I. glandulifera. The abundance of leaf-litter dwelling Acari was increased in invaded plots compared to the two other plot types. Furthermore, the presence of the invasive plant shifted the composition of Acari individuals belonging to different groups. Our field experiment demonstrates that an annual invasive plant can affect microarthropods which are important for nutrient cycling in various ecosystems.     

Impacts of the loss of neotropical highland forests on the species distribution: a case study using resplendent quetzal an endangered bird species

We evaluated the impacts of land-cover changes of evergreen cloud forests on the distribution of quetzals in the four mountain regions of Chiapas, Mexico. The land-cover changes were estimated comparing satellite images of 1970 and 2000. We also simulated the amount of remnant forests 50 years in the future. The past and the current distributions of quetzals were based on literature records and recent field surveys. Our results showed that in 1970 the forests occupied 973 km², and in 2000, 312 km², and annual loss from 3.34 to 6.85%. Our simulation suggests that 50 years from now, only one region will maintain evergreen cloud forests. In addition, we documented literature reports of 39 forests inhabited by quetzals, but in 2001 there remained 11 small-isolated forests. In order to guarantee the survival of this species, conversation efforts must be made to protect the quetzal and its habitat throughout the entire Mesoamerica region.     

机械旱直播方式对水稻产量和光合物质生产特征的影响

为探究不同机械旱直播方式对水稻产量形成的影响,该研究以优质食味粳稻南粳9108为供试材料,通过设置\     

Recovery of native plant communities after the control of a dominant invasive plant species, Foeniculum vulgare: Implications for management

The control and/or removal of a dominant invasive species is expected to lead to increases in native species richness and diversity. Small pilot studies were performed on Santa Cruz Island (SCI), California, in the early 1990s to test the efficacy of different methods on the control of Foeniculum vulgare (fennel) and management’s effects on native species recovery. We chose a treatment that showed significant native species recovery, applied it at the landscape scale, and followed its effects on fennel infested plant communities. We tested the hypothesis that results from small-scale studies translate to the landscape level. We found that although the control of fennel translated from the small to landscape scale, decreasing from an average of 60% to less than 3% cover, native species recovery did not occur in the landscape study as it did in the pilot studies. Invasive fennel cover was replaced by non-native grass cover over time. Unexpectedly, fennel cover in untreated fennel plots decreased significantly (though not as drastically) from over 60% cover to just under 40% cover while native species richness in untreated areas increased significantly. The correlation between precipitation and changes in native and non-native species richness and abundance in this study imply that changes in species abundances were highly correlated with environmental fluctuations. The lack of a native seedbank and the accumulation of non-native grass litter likely prevented the recovery of native species in treated areas. Greater vertical complexity found in fennel communities, which increased visitation by frugivorous birds and likely increased native seed dispersal, may have been responsible for the increase in native species richness in the untreated areas. These results suggest that successful invasive species control and native species recovery experiments conducted at small scales may not translate to the landscape level, and active restoration should be an organic component of such large-scale projects.     

Effects of land use on soil erosion in a tropical dry forest ecosystem,Chamela watershed,Mexico

During the past few decades, Mexico has been converting tropical dry forest (TDF) into cropland and pasture, with land degradation expressed as soil erosion being the main environmental consequence. The factors and processes influencing soil erosion are related to scale. At a microscale, the stability of soil aggregates has a significant impact on soil erodibility and strongly influences other soil properties. However, at plot and watershed scales, these relationships are less well known. The relationships between the distribution of soil aggregate size, soil properties and soil erosion were examined for two soil geomorphological units (hillslopes over granite and hillslopes over tuffs) and three land uses (TDF, unburned pasture and burned pasture) within the Chamela watershed of west–central Mexico. To evaluate soil aggregation as a parameter for upscaling soil erosion, the researchers measured microtopographic features at plot scales and interpreted 1:35,000 panchromatic aerial photographs at a watershed scale. Analysis of variance indicated significant differences in soil organic carbon (P < 0.05) and soil moisture (P < 0.01) contents between the two soil geomorphological units, and field tests showed differences in soil texture and structure.     

Effects of water-saving irrigation and groundwater depth on direct seeding rice growth,yield, and water use in a semi-arid region

In Iran, rice is grown in areas where the groundwater depth (GD) is low. Therefore, water-saving irrigation (WSI) can be used instead of continuous flood irrigation (CFI) in order to use the groundwater. The objectives of this study were to investigate the interaction effects of irrigation regimes and GDs on growth and yield of rice and groundwater contribution (GC) to crop evapotranspiration (ET) in cylindrical greenhouse lysimeters. Irrigation regimes were CFI and intermittent flood irrigation (IFI) with 4- and 8-day intervals (IFI-4 and IFI-8, respectively), and GDs were 0.3, 0.45, and 0.60 m. Results indicated that in a climate condition similar to experimental environment in greenhouse, using IFI-4 at a GD of 0.3 m produced grain yield and straw and root dry matter (DM) similar to those obtained when using CFI, with 53% reduction in irrigation water use. However, straw and root DM increased in CFI with increasing soil column length. Maximum GC/ET (41%) was observed when using IFI-4 at a GD of 0.3 m. A multiple regression equation was presented to estimate GC/ET as a function of GD and soil moisture deficit (SMD). This equation indicates that at a given GD with extension of irrigation intervals and increased SMD GC/ET reached a maximum value followed by a decrease afterwards. Maximum values of GC/ET were obtained at SMD values of 0.47, 0.40, and 0.33 at GDs of 0.3, 0.45, and 0.6 m, respectively.     

Effects of prescribed burning on distribution and abundance of birds in a closed-canopy oak-dominated forest, Missouri, USA

Prescribed, biennial burning in forest understory started in Cuivre River State Park, Missouri, USA, in the late 1980s to help restore the forest to conditions that existed prior to European settlement. Bird surveys were started in 1996 on two burned and two unburned sections of the park to determine what effects the burning and subsequent changes in vegetation were having on bird populations. Birds were sampled at 17 60-m radius point counts on each study area; each point was sampled twice per year during the main breeding period from 1996 through 2002. Total abundance and species richness differed among the four areas but no differences could be attributed to burning. Some individual species, however, differed in abundance and frequency of occurrence between burned and unburned areas. For example, Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea), Kentucky Warbler (Oporornis formosus), and several species of woodpeckers were more abundant on burned areas; Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapillus), Worm-eating Warbler (Helmitheros vermivorous), Wood Thrush (Hylocicla mustelina) and Acadian Flycatcher (Empidonax virescens) were among the species more abundant on unburned areas. As a consequence, overall community composition differed significantly between burned and unburned areas of the park, but did not differ between burned areas or between unburned areas. Prescribed burning was instituted to restore vegetation to presettlement conditions and has started to achieve that objective. Restoration also has affected and likely will continue to affect bird populations. Future maintenance of a full complement of bird species, including a number of neotropical migrants, will be dependent on presence of both burned and unburned forest habitat.     

The roles of habitat features, disturbance, and distance from putative source populations in structuring alien plant invasions at the urban/wildland interface on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa

Natural areas are becoming increasingly fragmented and embedded in an urban matrix. Natural and semi-natural areas at the urban/wildland interface are threatened by a variety of ‘edge effects’, and are especially vulnerable to invasion by introduced plants, with suburban gardens acting as significant sources of alien propagules. Urban/wildland interfaces also provide access for humans, leading to various types of disturbance. Alien plant invasions are one of the biggest threats facing remaining natural areas on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. The area provides an ideal opportunity to study the dynamics of invasions at the urban/wildland interface, since the largest natural area, the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP), is surrounded by the city of Cape Town. We explored invasion patterns in Newlands Forest (a small section of the TMNP) and detailed the roles of habitat features and distance from putative source populations in three main habitat types: natural Afromontane forest, riverine woodland habitats, and plantations of exotic pines (Pinus radiata and P. pinaster). We also examined the role of disturbance in driving invasions in two of these habitat types (Afromontane forest and pine plantations). We hypothesized that alien richness and alien stem density would decrease with distance from the urban/wildland interface, and that alien richness and alien stem density would increase with increasing levels of human disturbance.Distance from putative source populations and levels of anthropogenic disturbance influenced alien richness in Newlands Forest but not alien stem density. Alien richness decreased significantly with distance from presumed sources in the pine habitat, and increased significantly with disturbance in the forest habitat. Percentage overstorey cover and soil pH were important environmental variables associated with alien plant species. A socio-economic approach is discussed as being the most effective approach to the management and prevention of alien plant species in Newlands Forest.     

Experimental analysis of the effect of exotic and native plant species on the structure and function of soil microbial communities

Invasions of exotic plant species are among the most pervasive and important threats to natural ecosystems, however, the effects of plant invasions on soil processes and the soil biota have rarely been investigated. We grew two exotic and a native under-story plant species in the same mineral soil from a non-invaded forest stand in order to test whether observed differences in the field could be experimentally produced in the greenhouse. We characterized changes in the soil microbial community structure (as indexed by PLFAs) and function (as indexed by enzyme activities and SIR), as well as changes in potential nitrogen mineralization rates. We found that the invasion of two very dissimilar exotic species into the under-story of deciduous forests in eastern North America can rapidly cause changes in most of the studied soil properties. At the end of the three-month incubation, soils under the exotic species had significantly different PLFA, enzyme and SIR profiles than both initial soils and soils where native shrubs had been grown. We also observed a significant increase in pH and nitrification rates under one of the exotic plants. Such changes in the soil are potentially long-term (e.g. changes in soil pH) and are therefore likely to promote the re-invasion of these and other exotics. Both management of exotic plant invasions and the restoration of native communities must take into account exotic species effects on the soil.     

根区局部灌溉和氮、钾水平对玉米干物质积累和水肥利用的影响

在玉米某一生育阶段实施根区局部灌溉,探索其水肥供应模式。通过盆栽试验,研究了在不同氮（N）、钾（K）水平下,苗期拔节期和苗期抽雄期分根区交替灌溉和固定部分根区灌溉对玉米干物质积累、水分利用和N、K吸收的影响。结果表明,与常规灌溉相比,苗期拔节期根区局部灌溉总干物质质量降低不明显或略有增加,而水分利用效率明显增加,且不影响玉米对N、K吸收量; 而苗期抽雄期根区局部灌溉虽降低耗水量31.0%38.4%,但明显降低玉米总干物质质量和N、K吸收量。相同灌溉方式下,中等 N、K水平（N和K2O均为 0.12 g/kg）处理的总干物质质量、地上部和总N、K吸收量比低N、K水平（N和K2O均为0.08 g/kg）的明显增加; 而高N、K水平（N和K2O 均为0.16 g/kg）与中等N、K水平无明显差异。说明适宜N、K水平时在玉米苗期拔节期进行根区局部灌溉效果较好。     

Effects of an exotic prey species on a native specialist: Example of the snail kite

Despite acknowledging that exotic species can exhibit tremendous influence over native populations, few case studies have clearly demonstrated the effects of exotic prey species on native predators. We examined the effects of the recently introduced island apple snail (Pomacea insularum) on the foraging behavior and energetics of the endangered snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis plumbeus) in Florida. We conducted time-activity budgets: (i) on kites foraging for native Florida apple snails (Pomacea paludosa) in major wetland units within the kites’ range that had not been invaded by the exotic island apple snail and (ii) on kites foraging for exotic apple snails in Lake Tohopekaliga, the only major wetland utilized by the snail kite that had suffered a serious invasion of P. insularum. When foraging for P. insularum, snail kites dropped a greater proportion of snails, and they experienced increased handling times and decreased consumption rates; however, kites foraging for P. insularum also spent a smaller proportion of the day in flight. Estimates of net daily energy balances between kites feeding on P. insularum versus P. paludosa were comparable for adults, but juveniles experienced energetic deficiencies when feeding on the exotic snail. Due to this discrepancy, we hypothesize that wetlands invaded by P. insularum, such as Lake Tohopekaliga, may function as ecological traps for the snail kite in Florida by attracting breeding adults but simultaneously depressing juvenile survival. This study highlights the conservation implications and importance of elucidating the effects that exotic species have on native specialists, especially those that are endangered, because subtle influences on behavior may have significant population consequences.     

盐渍化土壤水肥耦合对向日葵苗期生长影响的试验

采用盆栽试验定量分析方法，模拟研究了不同盐分胁迫下，水肥对向日葵苗期冠层形态特征、干物质量及其分配的影响，揭示了盐渍化土壤水肥耦合机制。结果表明：水盐胁迫使向日葵的生长发育显著受阻，苗期明显滞后、株高、茎粗及叶片数显著减少，干物质量下降；在养分供应到一定程度上有助于缓解水分胁迫对向日葵生长发育产生的影响，而且养分供应不足时水分的增产作用会受到影响。据试验结果初步确定水盐(中度含盐处理)双重胁迫条件下的水肥配合值为:灌水定额为田持的75%(中水)并配施肥300 kg/hm²(中肥)时,最大干物质量为845.1 kg/hm²。合理施肥、量水配肥是盐渍化地区节水灌溉提高作物产量的有效措施。     

择伐作业对常绿阔叶林乔木层树种结构及物种多样性的影响

研究4种不同强度择伐作业(弱度13.0%、中度29.1%、强度45.8%和极强度67.1%)对常绿阔叶林林分结构及乔木层物种多样性的影响结果表明,轻度与中度择伐对林分结构的影响较小,原林分乔木层优势树种的地位仍保持甚至略有提高;而强度择伐和极强度择伐则引起林分结构一定的变化,一些优势树种的地位削弱,而另一些树种的优势地位上升。但采伐作业不利于常绿阔叶林物种多样性的发展,尤其是林冠强度破坏对物种多样性的影响最大,而轻度与中度择伐作业有利于原有物种保持与恢复,这可能与不同强度择伐作业引起林地光照条件、温度和湿度等环境因子的不同变化有关。     

马铃薯覆膜方式对土壤氮磷钾养分与产量的影响

针对宁夏南部山区马铃薯覆膜种植的特殊环境,通过田间试验研究了不同覆膜方式下土壤氮磷钾养分及马铃薯产量变化特征。结果表明,与露地种植相比较,随着马铃薯生育期的延长,全膜覆盖种植表层(0~20 cm)土壤有机质和有效磷具有累积现象,半膜种植表层(0~20 cm)土壤全氮和碱解氮含量较高,但对下层(20~60 cm)土壤有机质、全氮、碱解氮和有效磷含量影响较小,无论是马铃薯全膜种植还是半膜种植均对土壤速效钾含量影响较小,甚至略有降低,其中半膜种植降低最为显著,降幅达47.3 mg/kg。与露地相比较,覆膜种植可显著增加马铃薯产量,其中马铃薯全膜种植单位面积产量最高,达50 609 kg/hm~2,而马铃薯半膜种植由于受后期降雨的影响,烂薯较多,对产量造成较大影响。因此,马铃薯在生长后期降雨充沛的情况下可考虑揭膜管理措施。     

Herbicides, weeds and endangered species: management of bitou bush (Chrysanthemoides monilifera ssp. rotundata) with glyphosate and impacts on the endangered shrub, Pimelea spicata

Environmental weed invasion threatens the biodiversity of native species. Unfortunately, managing these weeds may also affect biodiversity adversely. A recent example occurred when glyphosate, a herbicide used to control the highly invasive weed, bitou bush (Chrysanthemoides monilifera ssp. rotundata), accidentally drifted over a small population of an endangered shrub, Pimelea spicata. Following concerns that the affected population would not recover and, thereby, cause the local extinction of P. spicata, we conducted a series of glasshouse and field experiments to explore the impacts of glyphosate on this endangered species. Seedlings and young plants of P. spicata, in which the tap root was undeveloped, were killed by a single application of glyphosate. Older plants with a well developed tap root also died back initially, but about 50% of individuals re-sprouted. This re-growth was associated with a significant decrease in tap root diameter, implying that further disturbance, including repeated treatment with glyphosate, would kill plants by impairing their potential for recovery. Unlike some sclerophyllous native shrubs, the tolerance of P. spicata to glyphosate was limited, even when its growth was slowed artificially by limiting water availability. Winter applications of glyphosate to manage infestations of bitou bush will impact adversely on populations of P. spicata and may also affect the other rare and endangered species whose survival is threatened by this species, even though some natives are unaffected by the herbicide. Protecting native biodiversity from bitou bush will involve sustainable weed management that minimises impacts on non-target native species.     

干密度初始含水率坡度对紫色土崩解特性的影响

为研究干密度、初始含水率和坡度对紫色土崩解特征的影响,通过采用自制仪器对27种不同干密度、不同初始含水率和不同坡度的紫色土进行崩解试验,为三峡库区消落带静水侵蚀导致的水土流失现象提供理论依据,分别得到试样的崩解速率与干密度、初始含水率和坡度的曲线关系.结果表明:在相同初始含水率和坡度下,随着干密度的增加,崩解速率随着浸泡时间增加呈现先增加后减小;在相同干密度和坡度下,随着初始含水率的增加,崩解速率是随着浸泡时间的增加呈现先增加后减小;相同含水率且干密度一定下,随着坡度的增加,崩解速率随着浸泡时间的增加呈现先增加而后减小.研究发现试样崩解均是从底部开始崩解,且崩解区域随浸泡时间的增长由底部逐渐延伸到顶部.     

施氮量对黄河滩区棉花叶片生理特性、干物质积累及产量的影响

为探讨黄河滩地植棉适宜的施氮水平,以转双价（Bt Cry1A+CpTI）基因抗虫杂交棉品种中棉所72为试验材料,设置了N 0、 150、 300和450 kg/hm2 4个施氮水平,研究了施氮量对棉花叶片生理特性、 干物质积累及产量的影响。结果表明,随着施氮量的提高,棉花叶面积指数（LAI）,叶片叶绿素和全氮含量,谷氨酰胺合成酶（GS）和超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）活性呈增加的趋势,丙二醛（MDA）含量有下降趋势,进而延缓了叶片的衰老进程。在施氮量为N 300 kg/hm2 时,棉花干物质积累量较大,且分配到生殖器官的比例较高;施氮量过低时,干物质积累量较少;施氮量过高时,有利于营养器官生长,干物质积累量最大,但分配到生殖器官的比例较低。棉花施氮量为N 300 kg/hm2时籽棉产量最高,比不施氮（N 0）和施氮量为N 150 kg/hm2的处理分别增加15.29% 和9 .77%,差异达到显著水平;与施N 450 kg/hm2的处理产量差异不显著。因此,在土壤肥力较低且下层土质沙性较强的黄河滩地,棉花的适宜施氮量为300 kg/hm2。     

New account on the thysanurans of the Azores (Insecta, Microcoryphia and Zygentoma) with description of a new species

Samples of thysanurans (orders Microcoryphia and Zygentoma) collected in the Azores were studied. The known distributions in the archipelago of Parapetrobius azoricus, Dilta saxicola, Lepisma saccharina and Ctenolepisma longicaudata are substantially enlarged. Machilinus cf. rupestris gallicus as well as the genus Machilinus and the family Meinertellidae are reported for the first time in the Azores. Trigoniophthalmus borgesi sp.n. (Microcoryphia: Machilidae), is described from the laurisilva forest of the Terceira island.     

Controlled ectomycorrhization of an exotic legume tree species Acacia holosericea affects the structure of root nodule bacteria community and their symbiotic effectiveness on Faidherbia albida, a native Sahelian Acacia

Many fast growing tree species have been introduced to promote biodiversity rehabilitation on degraded tropical lands. Although it has been shown that plant productivity and stability are dependent on the composition and functionalities of soil microbial communities, more particularly on the abundance and diversity of soil symbiotic micro-organisms (mycorrhizal fungi and rhizobia), the impact of tree introduction on soil microbiota has been scarcely studied. This research has been carried in a field plantation of Acacia holosericea (Australian Acacia species) inoculated or not with an ectomycorrhizal fungus isolate, Pisolithus albus IR100. After 7 year's plantation, the diversity and the symbiotic properties of Bradyrhizobia isolated from the plantation soil or from the surrounding area (Faidherbia albida (Del.) a. Chev. parkland) and able to nodulate F. albida, a native Sahelian Acacia species, have been studied. Results clearly showed that A. holosericea modified the structure of Bradyrhizobia populations and their effectiveness on F. albida growth. This negative effect was counterbalanced by the introduction of an ectomycorrhizal fungus, P. albus, on A. holosericea root systems.In conclusion, this study shows that exotic plant species can drastically affect genotypic and symbiotic effectiveness of native Bradyrhizobia populations that could limit the natural regeneration of endemic plant species such as F. albida. This effect could be counterbalanced by controlled ectomycorrhization with P. albus. These results have to be considered when exotic tree species are used in afforestation programs that target preservation of native plants and soil ecosystem rehabilitation.